Friday, 10 November 2017

Kirstenbosch - Is this the world's most beautiful botanic garden?

Kirstenbosch National Botanic Garden in Cape Town is one of the great botanic gardens of the world. Nestled against the slopes of Table Mountain, Kirstenbosch is 36 hectares of pure flower heaven. Somehow we missed seeing Kirstenbosch on our first trip to Sth Africa - honestly I don't know how that happened, but this time it was so lovely we went back twice.

Take my advice and go in spring. We visited in the first week of October and then again in the last week. The flowers, especially the magnificent yellow proteas, were slightly better in the first week but any time in October will give you a stunning display.If Kirstenbosch is not the world's most beautiful botanic garden it has to at least come close. What do you think? Have you ever been to a garden you just keep wanting to go back to?

My tips and other useful information: -

How much is the cost of entry to Kirstenbosch? - Entry costs R65 for Adults and R15 for children from 6 to 17 years. Children under 6 are free. There are also concessions for Sth African students and senior citizens. Check the website for up to date information. You can buy tickets online but there were no queues either time we visited.

What are the opening hours? - Kirstenbosch is open from8 a.m.to 7 p.m. September to March and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m April to August. The conservatory is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Check the website for up to date information.

How long does it take to see? - If you are on a tight schedule you can see all the highlights in a little more than an hour. If you are not pressed for time plan on spending two or three hours.

What is the best time of year to go? - Spring is definitely the time to go because the flowers are stunning. We went in early October and then again in late October. There were a few more flowers in bloom in early October.

What is the best time of day to go? Try not to visit too late in the day. The sun goes behind Table Mountain an hour or so before sunset plunging the gardens into shadow.

What if you have mobility issues? Kirstenbosch is built on the side of a hill with a fairly steep gradient. Shuttle car tours cost R75 per person in addition to the entry fee. Not all the areas are accessible to wheelchairs.

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Wow. This is quite the gardens. Your photos really bring it to life. The flowers, the colours, the bird life, the reflections in the water. It is just lovely. Do they say it is like this all year, or did you just hit the right season?

I admit it is hard to beat this garden in terms of beauty. The best botanical garden I have visited is the one in Rio de Janeiro. The location is stunning but what surprised me the most was the vast array of plants I have never seen before. I thing it is the am esituation inhere. #FarawayFiles

David and I love gardens, especially in spring. Kirstenbosch is stunning but I admit there are quite a few others around the world to give it a run for its money. The thing which really makes Kirstenbosch stand out is the setting, with Table Mountain in the background.

These gardens are spectacular! They're bigger than most of the gardens I've been to and also somehow manage to look less manicured. I think the mountainous backdrop is the icing on the botanical cake :)

I absolutely agree with you on this! Last year I visited the Kirstenbosch Gardens for the first time and I could've spend AGES there. I basically took a trillion photos, it's just so gorgeous!!! Thanks for the trip down memory lane.#TheWeeklyPostcard

I can only imagine how beautiful Kirstenbosch Gardens must have been in real life, against that majestic mountain backdrop. I've seen many gorgeous botanical gardens during my travels, but Kirstenbosch seems to be more spectacular that what I've seen so far. They landscape reminds me of Hawaii.

We went twice. One of the days was sunny and one cloudy. Almost all the photos here came from the sunny visit. The sun made a big difference to the photos but I don't think it made that much difference to the real experience.

I love all the shots Lynn but the hummingbird one is my fave. We saw these guys all over the place when staying in a jungle a few years back; the whiz as they zoomed by your head seemed like a little supersonic experience. Cape Town and this garden look stunning.

It looks a lot like a hummmingbird but actually it is a sunbird. I don't think Africa has hummingbirds. It was a fair bit bigger than the hummingbirds I have seen in the U.S. It was just as lovely though.

Oh my gosh you've made me want to hop on a plane and head back to Cape Town right now! I love Kirstenbosch and yes, truly, it is one of the most amazing botanical gardens in the world in such a stunning setting. The twilight concerts held there are wonderful too. We saw Michael Buble and Bryan Adams - fabulous. Great post, and memorable pics ;)

David had an SLR years ago when we first met and it was such a pain to carry around that we hardly took photos of anything. I am a great fan of point and shoots because they're so easy to pop in a handbag. Having said that I am just about to upgrade to a better zoom. We have moved and are now living next to a National Park in Sydney with loads of wonderful wildlife. I want to be able to get better shots of them. We have kangaroos, an entire family, wallabies, black cockatoos, white cockatoos and a pair of wedge-tail eagles. No doubt you will see them all on my social media pages in due course.